aglasshouse Usually referred to as a mainstream pop-punk band, A Day to Remember made their real break into the metalcore community with their 2009 magnum opus, Homesick. The band heavily relies on very modern melodic vocals, which coincides with occasional deathcore-style screams. Even though many people don't like that, or non-metal fans to be precise, this band has managed to get several awards for their musical abilities and creative musicianship. Of course, metalcore had already been a thing, ever since the mid-eighties when it's real breakthrough occurred. But it didn't really become technically 'mainstream' until A Day To Remember made it, well, a genre to remember.

This album contains the two most known songs by the band, 'If It Means Alot to You', an acoustic ballad which features guest vocals from Sierra Kusterbeck of Versa heading out the second half of the song. It's a pretty bland love song, but I can't help myself liking it. I like the juxtaposition of male and female vocals in a certain setting instead of simply having one gender singing the part. 'The Downfall of Us All' is the second song; it's a slamming heavy metal song that has heavy use of death-metal vocals. I would suggest it for anyone who are a fan of heavier-style metalcore. Now, aside from those two hits, there are several less appreciated songs on this album. This includes my favorite A Day To Remember song, 'My Life For Hire', which has a typical feel from the band until later in the song when "this is a battleground" comes in and drops into a really impressive heavy metal song for a bit. Really excellent. "I'm Made of Wax, Larry, What are You Made Of?' is a punk song based off of a quote from the not-yet deceased Robin Williams. It is really cool, especially the main line of the song, "Don't blink, they won't even miss you at all". I would also recommend the music video for it, always makes me laugh. 'Welcome to the Family' is another highlight with guest vocals from Mike Hranica of The Devil Wears Prada (another melodic metalcore band). Maybe less heavy than other songs, it's still pretty catchy and an enjoyable listen. That's it for my personal highlights, but trust me, there are many more other songs on here that are extremely good. So if you are a fan of the genre, this is highly recommended.

Go give it a listen.